Damn, that's scary. I think it was Urban who told me about how much higher the water was at Montrose and that the beach was only a fraction of the size it is now. The huge metal monstrosity at the dog park was actually a boat launch!!

Things aren't looking better in the future either. We are just at the beginning of a 7 year hotter planet with some effects of el nino as well. Horray global warming :x

Yea this week's weather is a bit scary. 60 tomorrow in January??? WTF. The weather has been weird last few years, to the point its affecting my kiting in Puerto Rico damnit!

I grew up in Chicago. When I was a kid, EVERY year there was snow on the ground in winter. I remember year after year shoveling snow every few weeks. We'd a foot or two at all times in the front yard. I know this because our yard was sloped quite steeply and my brother and I would build a big sledding ramp down the whole yard. Haven't seen snow like that since I moved back here from Hawaii.

I need to take some pictures because this is THE lowest I've seen it ever (5 years only). There is almost no swim area left on North Ave beaches because the "sea walls" are closer to the water line. That's no fun!

Question: Wouldn't a drought equally affect the river at the same rate though?

Last month was the lowest ever recorded lake level since records began. Just since this fall the lake has continued to drop at a remarkable rate. It's going to create changes for the good (more launches and safety exists) and bad (remarking good wave spots and piers will have less of a impact). The current low snow fall this winter throughout the Great lakes Basin will only make the problem worse.

DischargeThe United States Geological Survey monitors water flow at a number of sites in the Chicago River system. Discharge from the North Branch is measured at Grand Avenue; between 2004 and 2010 this averaged 582 cubic feet (16.5 m3) per second.[36] During the winter months as much as 75% of the flow in the North Branch is due to the discharge of treated sewage from the North Side Water Reclamation Plant into the North Shore Channel.[37] Flow on the Main Stem is measured at Columbus Drive; between 2000 and 2006 this averaged 136 cubic feet (3.9 m3) per second.[38]

Indeed I did launch jetski's out of the Montrose Launch ramps! They are now a wheelchair and dog access point.

Nancy told me that at one time, the worry was the lights shorting out down by the beach house. The bases of the giant towers were almost under water! The beach was just a little crescent in the SE corner of what's there today.

As far as I understand it takes a very long time for the water from the Great Lakes Basin to drain into the great lakes so the results of precipitation or drought take some time. Some of the water has to travel huge distances. Dave